I Also Know You're Not a Man

The cultivator froze for a moment, then said, "Do you suspect I have some ulterior motive, fellow Daoist?"

Chen Xun smiled indifferently. "Just tell me, how many spirit stones?"

The cultivator could only say, "Then give me a hundred low-grade spirit stones."

"So cheap." After paying, Chen Xun picked up the Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World and continued into the market, drinking as he walked.

The cultivator looked down at the hundred spirit stones, then up at Chen Xun's retreating figure, her eyes flickering slightly.

Some time later, Chen Xun finished browsing and left the Spirit Market.

As Chen Xun left the Spirit Market, quite a few cultivators who had already set their sights on him immediately followed him out.

Seeing this, the cultivator who had sold Chen Xun the wine hurriedly packed up her stall and strode out as well.

Buzzz.

After a ripple passed through the air.

Chen Xun stepped through the transparent wall of air and turned to look back. There was nothing but wilderness. Where had the Spirit Market gone?

It was easy to imagine that if a mortal came here and accidentally wandered into the Spirit Market, they might think they had encountered ghosts and be frightened to death.

Chen Xun took a sip of Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World and sighed appreciatively. "An apt name. One mouthful brings sourness, sweetness, bitterness, spice, and so many other flavors. It truly deserves to be called Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World."

With that, Chen Xun walked on, paying no attention whatsoever to the cultivators emerging from the Spirit Market after him, one after another.

The dozen or so cultivators exchanged glances, all knowing what the others had in mind. It was nothing more than murder and robbery.

They had noticed Chen Xun the moment he entered the Spirit Market. When he casually spent a hundred spirit stones on a flask of wine, they immediately marked him as a fat sheep ripe for slaughter.

Spending that many spirit stones on a flask of wine without even furrowing his brow-just how fucking rich was he?!

"Hmph. Fellow Daoists, from here on, let each of us rely on our own abilities."

A masked cultivator spoke coolly.

With that, he immediately set off after Chen Xun. The others' gazes sharpened, and they hurried to follow.

As the dozen or so cultivators gave chase, the cultivator who had sold Chen Xun the wine also emerged from the Spirit Market. She quickly changed her robes, then hurried after them with a frown.

Chen Xun walked at an unhurried pace. Before long, scattered, hurried footsteps and the whistle of movement through the air sounded behind him.

Soon, the cultivators rushed ahead of Chen Xun and blocked his path.

"Stop!"

Chen Xun stopped and cupped his hands, still holding the wine flask. "What is the meaning of this, everyone?"

Seeing that Chen Xun could still smile, the cultivators exchanged glances, then burst into laughter.

Still smiling?

Didn't he know death was at his doorstep?

Since when had such a prize specimen appeared in the Northern Mystic Cultivation World?

Entering the Spirit Market without concealing himself was bad enough. He had squandered spirit stones on a lousy flask of wine without even realizing he had been swindled, and instead of keeping a low profile, he was strutting around openly.

A cultivation rookie this idiotic was enough to make one's hair stand on end.

Chen Xun looked puzzled. "What are you laughing at?"

"Heh." One cultivator said, "Naturally, we're laughing at what an idiot you are. Instead of spending those spirit stones on a lousy flask of wine, you should have offered them to us."

Chen Xun frowned and looked at the wine in his hand, then smiled. "Thank you for the reminder, everyone. I'll be more careful next time."

"Hahaha!"

At that, the cultivators laughed even harder.

He really was an idiot. Couldn't he see what they intended?

More careful next time? He could be more careful in his next life.

Then Chen Xun smiled and said, "Still, this hardly counts as lousy wine. I feel like I got a bargain buying it for a hundred spirit stones. As the saying goes, spirit stones are precious, but fine wine is worth even more."

The cultivators faltered, then lost patience. Their eyes turned vicious, and the next instant, they lunged at Chen Xun like a pack of wolves!

The cultivator watching from hiding saw that Chen Xun neither dodged nor retreated and assumed he was frozen with fear. Her gaze immediately sharpened. Turning her hand, she took out a talisman, infused it with spiritual power, and flung it toward the group.

"Spiritfire Spell, go!"

The talisman streaked into their midst at tremendous speed and suddenly exploded. Surging flames instantly engulfed the cultivators, who rolled on the ground, screaming in agony.

Seeing this, the hidden cultivator darted out, grabbed Chen Xun's arm, and soared into the sky, carrying him away.

Within a few breaths, the cultivators had all burned to ashes.

"Fellow Daoist, why didn't you dodge just now?"

Once they were out of the mountains and on a road, the cultivator asked in a hoarse voice.

Chen Xun asked in return, "I wasn't afraid. Why would I dodge?"

The cultivator faltered, inwardly startled. Only then did she examine Chen Xun, but she could detect no fluctuations of spiritual power. He seemed to be a mortal, though she supposed he must have used a Spirit-Concealing Art.

The cultivator immediately smiled wryly. "It seems my intervention was unnecessary."

On reflection, that made sense. Nobody would foolishly show up in the Spirit Market without any concealment unless they had a trick or two up their sleeve.

Yet Chen Xun raised the wine flask in his hand and smiled. "Not unnecessary. I just finished this Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World. Do you have any more? I'd like to buy a few more flasks."

At his words, the cultivator abruptly backed away two steps. "You knew it was me, fellow Daoist?"

She had deliberately altered her voice, yet this man had still recognized her.

That was rather extraordinary.

In her eyes, Chen Xun began to seem unfathomable.

Chen Xun merely smiled. "What's so special about that? I also know you're not a man."

The cultivator was greatly alarmed and stared at Chen Xun in shock.

After a long silence, she removed her hood, and a cascade of purple hair spilled down like a waterfall. Then she took off her mask, revealing a beautiful face with delicate features and strangely alluring eyes.

No longer using a man's voice, Ji Mengli smiled wryly and said in her own feminine voice, "You truly are remarkable, fellow Daoist."

Chen Xun said nothing, merely shaking the empty wine flask in his hand as a hint.

Ji Mengli immediately took out another flask and handed it over. "There's no need to pay spirit stones, fellow Daoist. It's rare to meet someone who understands wine as you do. Consider it a gift."

Back in the Spirit Market, Ji Mengli had seen him identify over a hundred ingredients with just one sniff and had known he was someone who understood wine.

Chen Xun pulled out a handful of spirit stones and pressed them into her hands, smiling. "I can't owe you anything."

Ji Mengli stared blankly, not understanding. Helplessly, she could only accept the spirit stones. "I am Ji Mengli. May I ask your name, fellow Daoist?"

Chen Xun said, "Chen, as in old memories. Xun, as in searching."

Ji Mengli nodded, committing it to memory, then said dejectedly, "This time, I was hoping to find a kindred spirit in wine, get drunk, and talk about a few things troubling me. Would you be willing to join me for a drink, Brother Chen?"

Hearing this, Chen Xun drew the Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World he had just bought closer to his chest. "I could, but you're the one proposing a drink. I'm not forcing you. And since I'll be the listener, you'll be supplying the wine. That's not unreasonable, is it?"

Ji Mengli was dumbfounded. She truly had never met anyone like him, but she also found him genuinely amusing. Then her face blossomed into a smile. "That's only right."

Afterward, Chen Xun and Ji Mengli found a lake and sat down in a dilapidated pavilion beside it.

Ji Mengli took out four or five flasks of Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World and placed them on the stone table, but when she brought out wine cups, Chen Xun waved a hand to stop her.

Ji Mengli looked puzzled, then heard Chen Xun say, "With such splendid scenery, what need have we for cups? Wouldn't it be a delight to drink this Hundred Flavors of the Mortal World straight from the flask?"

Ji Mengli glanced at the scenery and smiled. "Indeed."